In Deep
by Dei Gratia 43
Summary: Cedric has been dating Cho since the Yule Ball. Now, the day before the third task, he's wondering if he's gotten himself too deep into a relationship that there's no future in. Then, a certain bookworm draws his eye. *Prequel to Behind Your Smile*


Have you ever felt like you had walked before you had crawled, leaped before you looked, or spoke without thinking? In other words, have you ever felt like you were in deep and had screwed up bloody royally in the process? If you have then you understand how Cedric Diggory was feeling as he stared unseeingly at the blank piece of parchment that sat sprawled out in front of him at his table in the library.

Cho Chang was beautiful, smart and witty. She was popular and was true to her house in every way. Cedric had felt more than happy when she had begun to look his way in interest roughly seven months before. He couldn't exactly deny that he was well-liked among his peers, no matter how modest he was. But, he still had been exuberant that Cho had decided to be with _him_ and not any of the other guys in the castle.

Though a Hufflepuff, Cedric was very courageous. Why else would he have been picked as one of the champions of Hogwarts in the Triwizard Tournament? Opposite Harry Potter of all people, for that matter! The kid was only fourteen years old and he was already a front runner in the tournament and, before that, had faced more danger than anyone Cedric had ever met.

Still, it hadn't been Potter that Cho showed up to the Yule Ball with almost six months ago, thus beginning their relationship as a golden couple. No, it had been Cedric. And for a long time, the Hufflepuff thought that everything was as perfect as everyone around them made it out to be.

But it wasn't.

Sure, Cho was beautiful and intelligent; yet, that didn't mean she was exactly the most kind and considerate girl in the world. She tended to have a flare for the dramatic and was always talking about one person or another as if they were beneath her. Cho had a tendency to act almost . . . regal. Something that Cedric had never been one to understand, though in all fairness to him he'd tried many times.

But, no matter how often he had tried to see where she was coming from, he couldn't. He just wasn't like her. He was caring, compassionate and loyal to his friends and family. He didn't tear the mickey out of people behind their backs and he most definitely didn't think of anyone as below his standards or his class in society.

In fact, he had even joined Potter's friend Hermione Granger's little society trying to protect the rights of house elves not too long ago. Not because he agreed with her, but because he respected her opinions and passion for the subject. The fact that he really agreed with those who argued that house elves actually _liked_ their work, simply didn't have to be brought up to the girl. He even pronounced the name of the organization correctly. S.P.E.W. not "spew."

_C'mon Cedric_, he thought to himself as he tried to bring his mind back to the job at hand. _Think_.

He reached a hand up to rub his forehead, trying to push away the ache that was beginning to pulse uncomfortably there. Lately, that was all that the topic of Cho seemed to do to him. Wasn't it bad enough that the third task was going to take place tomorrow? When you thought about it, his love life should be the furthest thing from his mind until after the task was long over.

Yeah, it _should_ be.

His relationship with his girlfriend had been a nuisance since month #4. Half because of her personality and half because her personality was practically imprisoning him. He wasn't one to think negatively about anyone, but he didn't see a way to make light of the situation. She was constantly asking him to hang out with her friends, always getting mad when he said he couldn't or that he wanted to do something else for a change. Merlin forbid that he do anything with his _own_ friends.

"Cedric?"

Well, hell.

"What are you doing here?"

_What does it look like I'm doing here? Picking daisies?_

"Just getting some last minute preparation in before tomorrow, you know? And Dumbledore wanted me to write him a letter about how I'm doing. He's been bugging me about not getting enough sleep for weeks now."

_For good reason_.

"Well, if you're not prepared by now, you're not going to be," Cho said matter-of-factly, taking the seat right next to him, automatically placing her hand on his upper thigh and stealing a kiss as he looked at her with a carefully constructed easy-going grin. "Why don't you take a break and come for a walk with me and Annabel?"

_Who?_

"I'd really like that," he said, smiling as genuinely as he could manage. Why couldn't they ever just do something together by themselves? He'd met and spent time with so many of her friends now that he couldn't even attempt to put faces to their names. They all just blended together. "But, I've really got to concentrate on the task."

"Cedric, there's no point to-"

"I know, but it'll give me piece of mind," he said, being sure to sound patient as he did so. He really couldn't begin to understand why she always seemed to have to second guess him. Would she ever be able to accept that things couldn't always go _her _way?

"Fine," she said, in no way attempting to sound less aggravated than she was.

Cedric watched her as she stood from the chair and lifted her chin at him in annoyance before spinning around on the spot and strutting away. Yes, _strutting_. There was no other word to describe it.

As soon as Cho had spun around the corner of the nearest aisle and out of sight, Cedric sighed and plopped his head down onto the surface of the table. What would the _Prophet_ say tomorrow morning if one of the Hogwarts champions mysteriously passed away due to a seemingly self-inflicted head wound? Probably that Potter had some say in it, and Cedric couldn't stand to further tarnish the already horrific reputation that the boy seemed to be gathering lately.

"Knut for your thoughts?" a soft, feminine voice asked from directly across from where he sat, causing him to lift his head warily.

For a moment, he didn't know what to think. It was Hermione Granger. The "elf girl," as he had taken to calling her in his head. He probably should have been less surprised at her appearance at his table than he really was, having already known that she spent a majority of her time there in the library. She always sat at the table that was directly in sight of his own down an aisle off to the right. He had his table and she had her's. They'd never shared before.

"Pardon?" he asked dumbly, trying and failing to keep the surprise off of his face.

"I can practically smell the wheels churning in your head," she explained, smiling kindly as she sat down in the chair two down from him.

Cedric looked down, fiddling with his quill as the still blank piece of parchment, which his face had been pressed against moments before, mocked his poor excuse of productiveness. He couldn't answer the girl for a few moments, too busy trying to figure out why she could possibly have come up to him. She couldn't have just wandered by, because his table sat in the Divination section of the library. Even Draco Malfoy knew enough about Hermione Granger to know that she would never be caught dead with one of those books, no matter how much she read.

Cedric gave into his desire to look at her directly, meeting her warm, chocolate colored eyes. Was it wrong that his heart sped up for a moment when he did? He didn't know much about Granger, but what he did know was that she was determined, bookish and, without a doubt, nice. She cared about things that she didn't need to care about. She stood up for those that couldn't stand up for themselves, and was unbelievably faithful to her friends. She'd probably make a decent Hufflepuff.

And Cedric would be lying if he said that this was the first time that he had ever noticed such things.

"Cedric?" Hermione asked, looking at him with a concerned frown that twisted her rosy lips and caused him to look away guiltily.

"Sorry," he muttered, scratching the back of his head. Since when did he become a bloody idiot around a girl? Especially a girl who was three years younger than himself.

"Sorry for what?" she laughed, making him unconsciously smile in response to the sound.

"Never mind."

"Well, are you going to at least answer my question?"

"What question?"

When she suddenly reached a hand across the space that separated them and placed it on his forehead, he felt himself grow warm. He, Cedric Diggory, was actually blushing. Merlin, what was this girl doing to him?

"What are you doing?" he sputtered, straightening up in his seat and looking at her with raised brows.

"Seeing if you have a fever," she shrugged, taking her hand away when she mentally decided that he was fine.

For a moment, his traitoress mind missed the feel of her skin on his.

"So . . ," she began, turning in her chair so that she was completely facing him. "Like I asked before, what were you thinking about that had you a second away from banging your head against the table?"

She was really observant, he noted. For some reason it seemed like a good idea to remember such things. There was a lot more to Hermione Granger than what met the eye. He had always thought so. Whenever he found himself gazing down that one particular aisle to the right, to where she would sit, scribbling furiously at one piece of parchment or another, he'd tried to figure out just what it was. Everything about her was so . . . intense.

"Nothing," he said, looking down in an attempt to hide his eyes, which Cho always said could be read like an open book when he was caught off guard. He always wondered if that was true, because if it was than how could she still have no doubts of their relationship and his commitment to it? In fact, he wondered why he would even take such precautions in front of Granger. Maybe the thought of her figuring him out was just too terrifying.

"Liar," she said, smiling softly as she did so in order to make sure that he didn't think she was saying it nastily.

He stared at her, taking in the warmth that seemed to seep from her pores. She had a light about her that he couldn't put his finger on. Did she even realize it? It was weird, because he'd always heard that she could be somewhat scary at times from those close to her. He couldn't imagine ever being scared of that smile of hers or that sparkle in her bewitching eyes.

_Mind out of the gutter, Ced_.

"Guilty," he sighed, a small smiling tugging at his lips. "It's complicated."

"I've got time, and I'm fairly certain that I can handle it," she reassured, folding her hands in her lap in a gesture that he was sure meant that she'd listen intently.

"It's about Cho," he explained, taking a deep breath to slow the beat of his heart before sliding into the seat that had been separating them, so now his long legs brushed her's that had been occupying the space under the table already.

"Oh?"

"She's a bit . . . much."

_That's putting it nicely_.

"Oh."

"Yeah, so I've been kind of thinking lately that I should just end it. You know? Get it over with, because I can't see it lasting," he said, running a hand through his already disheveled hair.

"How do you think _she_ feels?" Hermione asked, resting her head in her hand as she leaned on the table.

"I'm not sure. She doesn't seem to feel mutual about it, though. I don't think she would want to end it as much as I do," he said, frowning and absently tapping his fingers on the table.

"Why don't you feel for her the way you used to?"

"Er, well, it's complicated. I mean, it can't be a good sign when your girlfriend causes daily migraines and makes you want to find every hiding place in the castle just to avoid her, right?" he asked, chuckling when Hermione burst out laughing and nodded her head.

"I guess not."

"Haven't you ever felt like you were way too deep in a relationship?" he asked, looking at her and feeling an overwhelming urge to tuck the curl that fell into her face behind her ear. "With Cho, it's just up and down all of the time. It's like being on a rogue broom or something. To make matters worse, she talks nonstop about our future together. Not months in the future, but _years_ in the future. Like children and grandchildren."

Hermione grimaced sympathetically. For a moment, Cedric wondered how they had got into this conversation. They'd never really spoke before, at least not about such personal issues; yet, here she was, sitting at his table in the library, listening to his rant about the girl he'd been seeing for months now. And it most definitely was a rant, because now that he'd got going he didn't want to stop. Partly because it was a relief to finally get it off his chest, and partly because she looked adorable as she tried to figure out what to say to help him.

"And you feel bombarded by such a long-term commitment?" she asked, her tone unbiased and calm.

"No," Cedric said, shaking his head. "I feel bombarded by such a long-term commitment to _her_"

Hermione nodded, looking at him intensely for a long enough second that his mind started to drift off with thoughts that no taken boy should be thinking.

When Hermione stood up out of the blue and started to randomly walk away, Cedric spun in his chair to watch her go in confusion. Then, when she appeared to not be planning on coming back, he shouted, "Wait! That's it?"

She spun toward him with a smile. "I can't help you with this one, Diggory. I've said everything I could. It's all on you now."

"No way," he said, shaking his head in disbelief, "That was no help at all!"

"Wasn't it?" she asked, giving him a mischievous smirk that took his breath away, before spinning around and walking over to her table, where she gathered her belongings, waved to him and walked out of his line of sight.

What did she mean by that? She hadn't helped him answer any of his problems! Had she?

"Cedric!"

_Not again_.

"Cho?"

The girl was breathing heavily, as if she had run a mile to get back to the library. More likely, she'd just had an enthusiastic debriefing of their "fight" to what's-her-face . . . oh, right. Annabel.

"I'm sorry," she said, brushing her dark hair back from her almond-shaped eyes. Eyes that were a lot colder and darker than Granger's. This wasn't about Granger, though. It was about Cho.

"Excuse me?" he asked, sounding a little like he had when Hermione had hurled that first random question at him just minutes before.

"I'm sorry," she repeated, reaching out to brush his hair away from his face. "I shouldn't have overreacted in such a way. I mean, you've been really great about hanging out with my friends even though I know you don't enjoy it all of the time. I understand."

"No, Cho," he said, biting back the urge to just spit out that it was over, "It's okay. I really do want to go for that walk, but I have so much work to do before tomorrow."

He froze for a split second when her tiny hands slid to the back of his neck as she practically straddled his lap, "Forgive me?"

"Of course," he said, because he was cornered.

As she brought her lips to his, he tried to wipe away the feeling that he was cheating on someone by snogging his girlfriend. Was that crazy or what? And then, when she wrapped her arms around his neck, he thought that he could handle this for a little longer. The third task was tomorrow, and then he'd have all the time in the world to get a move on with obtaining what he truly wanted.

After all, Cho couldn't be as bad as she'd gave off lately. It was probably the stress of the Tournament making her out into a nag in his mind. Besides, she'd told him she loved him last month. That should be enough, right? And he really did care about her, deep down. So, he'd be fine if he gave them another go for a little longer. Maybe she'd change her ways . . . Yes, he had more than enough time to figure it all out. More than enough time before he really got in deep.

* * *

**AN:** **So, how was it? I didn't spend too much time on it, so I hope it's up to all of your likings. It's supposed to go into the how Cedric came to feel the way he does for Hermione. Does his inner turmoil kind of seem similiar to the plot of the other story? For those of you who haven't read Behind Your Smile, you probably took the ending as somewhat sad. Cedric dies in the third task, but here he is thinking he has all the time in the world. For those of you who think this, I urge you to read BYS. It'll make you feel better, I promise :D Reviews are more than welcome!**


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